The present invention relates to coagulated eggwhite food-stuffs. More specifically, it is concerned with a process for producing coagulated egg-white foodstuffs having excellent thawing property.
Coagulated egg-white foodstuffs prepared by heat coagulation of egg-white liquid is disadvantageous in that the water contained in the foodstuffs is separated and exuded and the structure of the egg white becomes spongy, impairing the palatability of the foodstuffs when the foodstuffs are thawed after storage thereof in a frozen state. As one approach to overcome these difficulties, there is known a method wherein a so-called water combinable material such as starch is incorporated into an egg-white liquid (for example, as disclosed in the specification of U.S. Pat. No. 3,510,315). My studies reveal, however, that the addition of a small quantity of the water-combinable material cannot provide the desired result, while a greater quantity of the material causes the coagulated egg white to be very hard, whereby the palatability thereof is remarkably impaired, although the water separation may be inhibited to some degree.
As a result of my study to develop coagulated egg-white foodstuffs which exhibit further decreased water separation during the thawing thereof, I have found that, in addition to the water-combinable material, the addition of a viscosity increasing agent into the egg-white is useful for obtaining such foodstuffs. I have also found that, in addition to the water-combinable material and the viscosity increasing agent, the addition of a starch hydrolyzate into the egg white not only results in further increased inhibition of the water separation during the thawing of the egg white without increasing the hardness of the egg white but also provides a final coagulated egg white product having the same smooth structure, after thawing, as that of a coagulated egg white before it is frozen. The present invention is based on these findings.